MacJournalism competes well at SIPA convention
Shield staff captures Scroggins Award for second straight year; program takes home visual, writing awards
Sophie Kessler won Best in Show in the club photo category of the SIPA Visual Contest for this image of the band placing sixth at UIL state last November.
March 13, 2022
The three branches of MacJ—newspaper, yearbook and digital media—combined forces to represent the program very well at the 2022 Southern Interscholastic Press Association annual convention. MacJ took home one of the five coveted Scroggins Awards for high school student media. SIPA, a press association that presents southern states and the District of Columbia, awards one winner in each platform. The Shield took home a 2022 Scroggins Award for its print newspaper after capturing its first ever Scroggins Award in 2021 for its newspaper website.
MacJ also competed very well in the SIPA visual and verbal contests, the results of which were announced at the convention, which returned in person to the University of South Carolina after being held virtually in 2021.
The complete list of MacJ winners is below.
SCROGGINS AWARD – Best of the South
SIPA awards one publication this award in each category.
The Shield, 2022 Scroggins Award winner for newsprint publication
2022 SIPA’s Best Visual Contest winners
Best of Show=first place, Award of Merit=second place, Honorable Mention=third place
Advertising categories
Senior ad
Award of Merit: Mia Gomez, “The 2022 Knight, pages 178-179”
Art, graphic and illustration categories
Infographic
Honorable Mention: Anna McClellan, “The Principal Selection Process”
Editorial cartoon
Best of Show: Amaya Collier, “Overworked”
Strip cartoon
Best of Show: Kai Kirkham, “Fish, Volume 69, No. 1”
Award of Merit: Kai Kirkham, “Fish, Volume 69, No. 3”
Honorable Mention: Kai Kirkham, “Fish, Volume 69, No. 2”
Broadcast categories
Short film
Honorable Mention: Alice Scott and Lucy Marco, “Thank God It’s Friday”
Newsmagazine categories
Newsmagazine cover
Award of Merit: Grace Nugent, “Volume 69, Number 2, What kind of big brother is Gaggle?”
Entertainment package
Award of Merit: Samantha Powers, “Celebrating ‘Black girl magic’”
Honorable Mention: Kennedy Weatherby, “There’s nothing like opening night”
Feature package
Honorable Mention: Caroline Owen, “Not just a pipe dream”
Headline package
Best of Show: Sophie Leung-Lieu. “Pandemic provides no rest for the weary”
In-depth cover story package
Best of Show: Alice Scott, Lucy Marco, Lydia Reedy and Grace Nugent, “Saying goodbye to Savers”
Award of Merit: Samantha Powers, Kai Kirkham, Josie Bradsby, Lydia Reedy and Elisha Scott, “Close quarters”
Honorable Mention: Grace Nugent and Madelynn Niles, “Confessions of a teenage CEO”
News package
Award of Merit: Grace Nugent and Evie Barnard, “Latest Lone Star legislation”
Op/ed package
Best of Show: Lanie Sephri, “It’s time to write off annotation”
Honorable mention: Franice Wilhelm, Morgan Eye and Kai Kirkham, “Should hybrid learning return?”
Sports package:
Best of Show: Grace Nugent, “Volume 69, Issue 1 Sports Highlights”
Table of contents
Best of Show: Madelynn Niles, “Volume 69, Issue 2 Table of contents”
Newsmagazine portfolio
Best of Show: Grace Nugent
Award of Merit: Kennedy Weatherby
Honorable Mention: Sophie Leung-Lieu
Online categories
Computer graphics
Best of Show: Ingrid Smith, “Game changers”
Award of Merit: Lucy Marco, “A Sharp soundtrack”
Honorable Mention: Logan Davis, “Allowing full capacity at AISD events is wrong”
Digital storytelling
Best of Show: Alice Scott, “After year and a half of online school, young students face whole new normal back on campus”
Award of Merit: Alice Scott, Anna McClellan, Grace Nugent, Kate Boyle, “A COVID-19 year in the life of Mac”
Features package
Honorable Mention: Lucy Marco and Alice Scott, “Thank God it’s Friday”
News package
Award of Merit: Alice Scott, “Universities, school districts respond differently to threat of omicron”
Opinion package
Award of Merit: Logan Davis, “Allowing full capacity at AISD events is wrong”
Photo gallery
Honorable Mention: Josie Bradsby, Lydia Reedy and Kennedy Weatherby, “Class of ‘22 is on fire (figuratively)”
Sports package:
Best of Show: Charlie Partheymuller, “With fourth-down stops, potent ground attack, Knights outlast Grizzlies in overtime to take bi-district title”
Award of Merit: Grace Nugent, “Taco Shack XX: the last chance”
Photography categories
Club
Best of Show: Sophie Kessler, “All smiles at UIL State”
Environmental portrait
Best of Show: Amaya Collier, “Freshman Aubrey Mitchell”
First year student
Best of Show: Emma Hagood, “Our halls should be safe”
News
Award of Merit: Amaya Collier, “Standing up and walking out”
Honorable Mention: Evie Barnard, “Genevieve and Bri”
Sports reaction
Best in Show: Mia Gomez, “Revelling in a playoff victory”
Student Life
Award of Merit: Meredith Grotevant, “A hair-raising solo”
Photography portfolio
Best of Show: Kennedy Weatherby
Social media package
Best in show: Morgan Eye, Sophie Kessler and Logan Davis
Yearbook categories
Academic spread
Award of merit: Camille Wilson, Emii Anderson, Meredith Grotevant & Sol Ortiz, “C’est la tea”
Club spread
Best of Show: Elly Schottman, “Go Pink or go home”
Section divider
Honorable mention: Carly Johnson, “We’re back … finally”
2022 SIPA’s Best Writing Contest winners
Broadcast categories
Feature script
Third place – Alice Scott & Lucy Marco, “Thank God it’s Friday”
Human interest script
Second place – Samantha Powers, “Coffeehouse makes a comeback”
Sports script
Second place – Alice Scott, “Unmatched determination” or “Stepping up as leaders”
Editorial column
First place – Lanie Sepheri, “It’s time to write off annotation”
Second place – Evelyn Griffin, “The ‘pick me’ girl persists”
Print categories
Staff editorial
First place – Samantha Powers and Tobin Wine, “SB 3 is re-whiting history”
Second Place – Ellen Fox, “We can handle the whole truth”
Entertainment/feature column
First place – Alice Scott, “Alamo Drafthouse finds a way”
Third place – Samantha Powers, “Support Austin, not Amazon”
News story
Third place – Samantha Powers & Evelyn Griffin, “Close Quarters”
Personality profile
First place – Madelynn Niles “Recess back in session” or “Rock and roll (of film)”
Second place – Ellen Fox “Inspired in 2005 to help parents succeed, Moore wrote guide to interracial adoption”
Honorable mention – Amaya Collier & Ingrid Smith “Martinez marches to Mac band”
Review
First place – Madelynn Niles, “Minari: an intimate family portrait”
Second place – Grace Nugent, “Wonder Woman 1984 bites the dust/Soul creates worlds of beautiful whimsy”
Sports story
First place – Grace Nugent, “Inside the line” or “Vandament enjoys home-run season”
Third place – Kennedy Weatherby, “Twins on the three-point line”
Honorable mention – Francie Wilhelm, “Skating through struggles”
Sports story
First place – Marley Angle, “Straight shot to nationals”
Online categories
Alternative storytelling
Second place – Alice Scott, “Dear Mr. President and Madam Vice President”
Blog
First place – Madelynn Niles and Grace Nugent, “N&N at the movies”
Second place – Lucy Marco, “Lucy’s Laboratory”
Third place – Lydia Reedy & Josie Bradsby, “Flavor Profiles”
Column
First place – Alysa Spiro, “It’s High time to respect Jewish holidays” or “A cure for pandemic black boxes”
Second place – Alice Scott, “Beautiful blue eyes”
Features
Honorable mention: Caroline Owen, “Not just a pipe dream”
Investigative story
Second place: Evie Barnard, “Q: Why is Fine Arts Academy coordinator job being cut? A: You better sit down for the answer. It’s complicated.” or “Despite standing to lose $34.76 million in state funding, district offers virtual learning to K-6 students”
News
First place – Lucy Marco and Grace Nugent, “Restrictive trans athlete bill likely to reach House floor”
Personality feature
First place – Lydia Reedy, “Mac Spanish teacher does her part to make COVID vaccine a reality”
Reviews
Third place – Madelynn Niles, “Zilker Park event sheds light on unusual holiday season”
Sports column
First place – Thomas Melina Raab, “Bill to ban transgender athletes creates problem where there was none”
Second place – Anna McClellan, “Why high school athletes should be allowed to play”
Sports feature
First place – Samantha Powers, “Mac soph helps paint, raise Austin FC’s first tifo”
Second place – Alice Scott, “Stepping up as leaders”
Sports news
Second place – Grace Nugent, “Taco Shack XX: the last chance,” “10 years later and the win streak rests on one game”
Third place – Logan Davis & Elisha Scott, “Tennis team captures bi-district title”
Honorable mention – Thomas Melina Raab, “Riley ends stellar season with second-place state finish” or “Same place. Same two players. Different outcome.”
Photos cutline categories
First place – Bella Russo, “Meet the multiple multiples of McCallum”
Second place – Alice Scott, “When setting a Pink Week fundraising record is secondary”
Third place – Ellen Fox, “Seniors make most of muddy mask-querade”
News cutline
First place – Elisha Scott, “Standing up and walking out”
Second place – Bo Witzel, “Women’s rally delivers an unmistakable message: repeal Senate Bill 8, vote its creators out of once”
Sports cutline
First place – Caleb Melville, “Seniors share their emotions as their high school football experience ends with Friday’s playoff loss”
Second place – Sophie Leung-Lieu, “Archery team surprises founder with national Coach of the Year Award for his work to build, sustain team”
Third place – Charlie Partheymuller, “Taco Shack Bowl returns to normal, Taco Shack trophy returns to Mac”
Yearbook categories
Alternative storytelling:
First place – Zazie Bryant, “Quarantine must haves”
Second place – Hannah Zuniga, “An early challenge”
Third place – Lindsey Plotkin, “Sensational season comes to an emotional end”
Community copy
First place – Naomi Di-Capua, “For one Austin neighborhood, community during a pandemic began with a song … or two”
Second place – Josie Bradsby, “Building for now and the future”
Groups copy
Second place – Lindsey Plotkin, “An unpredictably perfect week”
People copy
First place – Madelynn Niles, “In making violin, junior double fine arts major strings together his love for art and music” or “Jacob’s ladder knows no limit”
Third place – Francie Wilhelm, “Finding fulfillment”
Sports copy
Second place – Lindsey Plotkin, “Major milestone”
Third place – Grace Nugent, “Almost had it” “An upset for the ages”
Student life copy
First place – Lucy Marco, “Life as a teenage essential worker”
Theme copy
First place – Lindsey Plotkin & Hannah Zuniga, “It’s not all blue”
![With the AISD rank and GPA discrepancies, some students had significant changes to their stats. College and career counselor Camille Nix worked with students to appeal their college decisions if they got rejected from schools depending on their previous stats before getting updated. Students worked with Nix to update schools on their new stats in order to fully get their appropriate decisions. “Those who already were accepted [won’t be affected], but it could factor in if a student appeals their initial decision,” Principal Andy Baxa said.](https://macshieldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/53674616658_18d367e00f_o-600x338.jpg)
